How to calculate fee waiver & indigency screener in Utah

Quick takeaways

• In Utah, a court finds an applicant indigent (for a cause that is not a petition for expungement) if an affidavit shows income at or below 150% of the federal poverty level. The baseline threshold comes from Utah Code § 78A-2-302 and Utah R. Civ. P. 73.
• DocketMath’s fee-waiver & indigency screener (US-UT) turns that standard into a straightforward calculation:

  • Threshold income = 1.50 × (most recent federal poverty guideline for your household size)
• Your result depends mainly on (1) household size and (2) the annual income figure you enter (matching what you expect to support in your affidavit).
• Utah’s rule references “the most recent poverty income guidelines”. DocketMath uses the guideline dataset available to the tool at runtime—so if you’re close to the cutoff, double-check your household size and make sure your filing aligns with the “most recent” guideline context.

Inputs you need

To run the Utah fee-waiver & indigency screener in DocketMath (US-UT), gather these inputs first:

• Household size (number of people)

  • Use the number your poverty guideline line will correspond to. DocketMath uses this to select the appropriate poverty guideline amount.

• Your income figure (annualized)

  • The tool compares your entered annual income against the Utah threshold.
  • If your income is weekly or monthly, convert it to an annual number before entering it.

• Income basis you want the screener to evaluate

  • Pick a consistent annual income number (for example: gross annual income, if that’s what you plan to document in the affidavit).
  • DocketMath compares the exact number you enter against the Utah threshold; it won’t “fix” a mismatch between your entered income and the income concept you use in your affidavit.

• Matter type flag (context check)

  • The provided statute excerpt limits the 150% rule to “a cause that is not a petition for expungement.”
  • If your filing is an expungement petition, you should not rely on this general/non-expungement rule set—use the correct expungement-specific approach (if available in Utah guidance/tools).

Optional (but helpful for affidavit readiness):

• Income documentation you’ll rely on

  • Pay stubs, benefit letters, tax-return summary, or other supporting documents consistent with the number you enter.
• Guideline year awareness

  • The rule uses “the most recent poverty income guidelines.” If you are filing around a guideline update, ensure the poverty guideline context matches what the tool (and your affidavit) is treating as “most recent.”

How the calculation works

1) Identify the Utah indigency standard (non-expungement)

Under Utah Code § 78A-2-302, the court must find an individual indigent if the person’s affidavit shows—for a cause that is not a petition for expungement—that the individual’s income level is at or below 150% of the United States poverty level, using the most recent poverty income guidelines.

Utah R. Civ. P. 73 provides related procedural context for indigency determinations in Utah civil proceedings.

2) Compute the Utah threshold using the 150% multiplier

DocketMath’s screener applies the core math from the statute excerpt:

• Poverty guideline amount = the applicable federal poverty guideline for your household size
• Utah indigency threshold = 1.50 × poverty guideline
• Comparison rule:

  • If your annual income ≤ threshold, the screener flags you as indigent (under the income test) for the general/non-expungement scenario.
  • If your annual income > threshold, the screener flags you as not indigent (under the income test).

Quick intuition example (illustrative)

• Poverty guideline for your household size: $20,000
• Utah threshold: 1.50 × $20,000 = $30,000
• If you enter income of $28,000, then $28,000 ≤ $30,000 → the income test passes in the screener.

3) Why household size affects everything

Because the poverty guideline is based on household size, the threshold moves as your household count changes. That means:

• Two people with the same income can get different screener outcomes if their household sizes differ.
• If your household size input is off by even one person (depending on the guideline line), the threshold can shift enough to flip the result.

4) Use the DocketMath output as screening—not a promise

The screener helps you estimate how your entered numbers line up with the Utah 150% poverty test. It does not replace court review.

• Treat “eligible” results as a signal that your numbers may align with the affidavit standard.
• Treat “not eligible” results as a prompt to re-check your household size, annualization, and whether you’re applying the correct (non-expungement) rule set.

You can run the screener here: /tools/fee-waiver-indigency.

Common pitfalls

1. Using the wrong poverty guideline line (household size mismatch)
   Household size drives the guideline amount. Entering a household size that doesn’t match your affidavit can lead to misleading screening results.

2. Forgetting to annualize monthly/weekly income
   The statute compares an income level to the poverty guideline. The screener assumes your input is an annual amount. If you enter monthly income as if it were annual, the math will be wrong.

3. Mixing up general/non-expungement with expungement petitions
   The provided excerpt limits the 150% test to “a cause that is not a petition for expungement.”
   If you’re filing an expungement petition, you should verify whether Utah applies a different indigency standard.

4. Assuming the screener uses the same income definition your affidavit will use
   The tool compares against the number you enter. If your affidavit uses a different income concept (even if it’s “close”), your screener and affidavit could conflict.

5. Not accounting for “most recent poverty income guidelines” context
   Utah’s rule is tied to the most recent poverty guidelines. DocketMath uses the tool’s available guideline dataset—so if you’re near the cutoff, be extra careful that your household size and timing are aligned with the intended guideline context.

Disclaimer: This is a general screening explanation, not legal advice. Courts may consider additional affidavit details and apply the statute and rules to your specific facts.

Sources and references

• Utah Code § 78A-2-302 (indigency standard; includes the 150% poverty level rule for causes not involving expungement petitions):
  https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title78A/Chapter2/78A-2-S302.html
• Utah R. Civ. P. 73 (procedural rule related to indigency determinations in Utah civil matters)

Key statutory language provided in your jurisdiction data (excerpt):

• “A court shall find an individual indigent if the individual's affidavit... demonstrates: for a cause that is not a petition for expungement, the individual has an income level at or below 150% of the United States poverty level as defined by the most recent poverty income guidelines published by the...”

TODO (if you want deeper coverage beyond the provided excerpt): Confirm whether Utah has additional indigency standards for specific filing types beyond the general/non-expungement framework described here.

Next steps

1. Run the Utah screener in DocketMath

   • Open: /tools/fee-waiver-indigency
   • Enter your household size and your annualized income figure.

2. Sanity-check your inputs

   • Income is annualized correctly (not monthly/weekly in disguise)
   • Household size matches what you will state in your affidavit
   • Your matter is not an expungement petition (unless you confirm the correct expungement-specific rule set)

3. Prepare your supporting affidavit materials

   • Collect documentation that supports your entered income number and household composition.
   • Keep your records organized so you can explain and support the exact figures you input into the screener.

4. Use the result to guide your filing package

   • If the screener flags eligibility: focus on consistency and completeness in your affidavit.
   • If it flags ineligibility: revisit annualization, household size, and whether the case type is truly non-expungement under the rule you’re applying.

Related reading

• How to calculate fee waiver & indigency screener in New York — Full how-to guide with jurisdiction-specific rules
• How to file in forma pauperis in Alabama — Direct answer to the question
• How to file in forma pauperis in Alaska — Direct answer to the question